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Hurt Highway Lt.
Location: Greenwich, Connecticut Date: January 19, 1988 Story 42-year-old Lieutenant Jim Pucci was a 20 year veteran of the Greenwich Police Department. On the evening of January 19, 1988, he and his fellow officers were called to the scene of an accident. Sergeant Pat Shula was the first officer to arrive. "There were vehicles passing me at a high rate of speed on both sides, so we started setting up a flare pattern to protect the scene," said Sergeant Shula. Officer Gary Hullick, who had known Lt. Pucci for fifteen years, was helping to control the traffic. "Headquarters notified me on the air to go qualified and that we had our shooting program that was taking place," he explained. Lt. Pucci arrived to take Officer Hullick's place laying down warning players on the roadway. An non-injury accident had occurred on a three lane stretch of highway reducing traffic to one lane and speeds to one to ten miles an hour. Officer Hullick left the scene as Lt. Pucci started laying down warning signs. "Jim was one of the guys you kind of looked up to and wanted to be like," said Sergeant Shula. As Lt. Pucci continued laying down signs on the road, police detective Dave Pierrot was on his way back to headquarters from Riverside, Connecticut, to Port Chester, New York. Lt. Pucci continued laying down warning signs and did not see a car coming toward him. As he went to the trunk to get more warning signs, the car hit him, crushing his left leg as he was still in the trunk. "I saw that there was a police officer in the back of the car and I realized that he had lost his left leg," said Detective Pierrot. Lt. Pucci was in shock and his face was pale white. Sergeant Shula immediately came to the scene to help, and they had to take Lt. Pucci to the hospital immediately. Officer Hullick was called back to the scene. There was no time to call 911, so the police made a decision to put Lt. Pucci in a squad car and take him straight to the hospital. As they drove, Officer Paula Gorman, who had known him for more than twenty-five years, comforted him. "I remember Jim saying things about his family and that he didn't want to die. I just told him to hang in there and that we were on our way to the hospital, and not to worry about anything," Officer Gorman said. While Lt. Pucci was being rushed to the hospital, Officer Chuckie Smith was sent to his house to notify his wife, Diana, and three daughters, Allyson, Melissa, and Jamie. "He told me that Jim had been in an accident," remembers Diana. Within five minutes, Lt. Pucci arrived at the hospital where a trauma team immediately went to work and tried to save his life. Dr. Kevin Conroy took over his care. "The initial assessment was that he had a chest wound and a left leg amputation," he claimed. Diana kept telling Dr. Conroy that she didn't care about his leg and what else would happen, but he wouldn't give her an answer. Lt. Pucci was immediately rushed into surgery, but they couldn't save his leg, so they had to amputate it. Plus, they did not even know if he would survive. Diana walked into his room. He had a tube in his throat but was able to move his head and squeeze her hand. "I was able to talk to Jim, but only went home to shower and then spent the night with him at the hospital. The nurses kept telling me to go home and I said, 'I'll go home when you tell me that my husband is going to live,'" said Diana. When Allyson, Melissa, and Jamie got to the hospital, they were really scared, but did not cry because they felt strong enough for Lt. Pucci and took turns holding his hand. He was hospitalized for eight weeks and underwent months of physical therapy to learn to walk with an artificial limb. "I've always loved life and I want to live life to its fullest," said Lt. Pucci. One year after the accident, he returned to work part time. The driver who struck him, 57-year-old Henry J. Selverstone, had been trying to get around the line of stopped cars. He was convicted of unsafe lane changing and fined $50. Category:1988 Category:Connecticut Category:Amputations Category:Crimes